In a nursing diagnosis, which of the following is an etiological factor?

• A. Diagnostic label
• B. Etiology
• C. Cues
• D. Interventions

Answer: (B)

In a nursing diagnosis, the piece that explains why the problem exists is the etiology. It identifies the cause or contributing factors that link the problem to its origin. Nursing diagnoses are typically framed with Problem, Etiology, and Defining Characteristics (cues). The etiologic factor is not the problem label, nor the cues (which are the observable manifestations), nor the interventions.

For example, in a statement like “Acute pain related to tissue injury from surgery,” the etiologic factor is the tissue injury from surgery—the cause that explains why the patient is experiencing pain. The cues would be the patient’s pain reports, facial grimacing, guarding, restlessness, etc., and the interventions would be actions to relieve the pain. So the etiologic factor corresponds to the etiology—the underlying cause or contributing factor.